HFEA has released its latest report on fertility trends in the UK

Age of IVF patients: patients undergoing IVF are almost six years older on average than women having their first child naturally in the UK. In 2022, the national average age for women giving birth to their first child was 29.2 years, while the average age for first-time IVF patients was 35.1 years and those having IUI treatment - 33.6. 

Impact of age on fertility treatment: as fertility naturally declines with age, the increasing older IVF patient population may affect the success rates of IVF treatments as a whole. The increase in age may also be linked to financial challenges in funding fertility treatments due to the rising cost of living and a decrease in the proportion of NHS-funded IVF cycles.

Decrease in NHS-funded cycles: the proportion of NHS-funded IVF cycles has continued to decrease, falling from 40% in 2012 to 27% in 2022.

Increase in IVF cycles: despite these challenges, the number of IVF cycles performed in the UK increased by 11%.

Reduction in multiple births: multiple births (such as twins) from IVF have reached their lowest level yet, at 4%, down from 28% in the 1990s. This major reduction is a significant public health success, saving the NHS millions of pounds and promoting the health of mothers and their babies.

Egg and sperm donation: use of donor eggs, sperm and embryos in IVF has increased over the last decade, accounting for  roughly 1 in 200 of all babies born in the UK in recent years. 

UK-based donors: the number of new egg and sperm donors increased by 21% since 2019, however UK-based sperm donors decreased by 11% (with over half (59%) of IVF cycles in the UK performed with donor sperm from abroad).

Egg freezing is the fastest growing type of treatment: egg freezing cycles increased by 81% between 2019 and 2022. This shows that more women are preserving their fertility: both as elective freezing so they can use their eggs in the future and for medical reasons. This increase in egg freezing cycles can be attributed to improved freezing techniques and better survival rates which allow women to have confidence in egg freezing.

To read the full report: https://www.hfea.gov.uk/about-us/publications/research-and-data/fertility-treatment-2022-preliminary-trends-and-figures/#:~:text=In%202022%2C%20 most%20 fertility%20service,(%2D1%25)%20in%202022.